Next Generation Imaging Spectrometers Enabled by Advanced Detectors for Earth Science/Applications as Well as Solar System Exploration

Abstract

Spectroscopy is a powerful analytical method based in the interaction of light with matter that is used to test hypotheses across a broad range of scientific disciplines as well as for quantitative applications. In the late 1970's the concept for a new type of instrument that measured spectra for every point in an image was conceived and proposed using the most advanced infrared detector array available at the time. The Airborne Imaging Spectrometer first flew in 1982. New discoveries were made with the first flights of this instrument. Since that time increasingly advanced airborne and space imaging spectrometers have been developed and deployed for science and applications on Earth and for exploration throughout the solar system. This paper presents recent imaging spectrometer instrument developments and results as well as examples of new instrument architectures enabled by next generation detectors. These new designs support spatial measurement scales from 50 microns to 1 kilometer with full spectroscopy for range of new Earth and solar system missions and are expected to be deployed in the coming decade and beyond.